Lauren and everyone else was watching a movie downstairs. Everything was going well according to Landon. Then he heard Lauren's phone ring and she answered it. When she was listening to the other person on the phone, her mood seemed to just plummet. She sounded worried and then Landon felt her leave after she hung up the phone.
She came back and she went around hugging everyone and saying her thanks. When she came to him, she kissed him on the cheek. And then Lauren thanked him for everything and told him that she would talk to him later.
Landon had to admit to himself that he had grown accustomed to having Lauren around and when she left so suddenly, he felt this hole, like something was missing. She didn't tell him why she had to leave but he trusted that she would tell him eventually.
"Did she say why she had to leave like that?" Landon asked to break the silence.
"No,"Laura answered. "But it must have been pretty important. She seemed very worried."
"I know."
"Look, Landon," Lance added, "it was probably an emergency. I think the person calling her was Kyle. It sounded like a man's voice."
"Yeah, I know. I heard it too." Landon said.
Laura saw how worried her son was and she went over to his side. "Hey, come one sweetie. She's fine. You know Lauren's a strong girl and she'll eventually tell you when she's ready."
"Yeah, I know , Mom. But I'm still worried."
"It's normal to be worried, sweetie. But you have to give her space. She'll tell you when she's ready." She paused then she looked at both her sons. "I think it's time to go to bed."
"Mom, I'm nineteen." Lance added.
"That doesn't matter," Laura turned to him. "You're still my baby. And besides you have to work tomorrow, so you should definitely go to sleep."
Lance looked at his mother and he nodded. There was no use in arguing with her. There was no way that she would be convinced otherwise. If one person went to sleep, it made no sense to her that the other would stay awake.
Lance went to brush his teeth and he changed into his pajamas. He went downstairs to say good night to his mother and to Landon. He went upstairs and went to bed. Just thinking of work made him tired. He fell asleep before he knew it.
Laura was still downstairs with Landon. "Come on sweetie," she said as she helped him up. "We're taking you upstairs so you can brush your teeth and get ready for bed."
Landon let Laura lead him upstairs. After all his mother was right. Lauren would tell him eventually of what was going on when she was ready for it. And if she didn't want to tell him, he'd accept that too.
"I'll go brush my teeth. Do you want me to come back to help you?" Laura asked Landon.
"I'll be fine, Mom. Thanks. Don't worry about me. Go rest." Landon kissed his mom good night and then went to brush his own teeth. After his teeth were brushed he went to his room, but he didn't want to sleep yet.
He was still worried. Instead of going to sleep, Landon sat down on his bed. He wondered what had happened. Lauren had been in such a hurry that it just made him worry.
"Maybe you're worrying too much about the whole situation." Landon said to himself. "Be patient. As much as you want to know what's going on, you'll have to wait."
Landon couldn't deny that he missed Lauren. It felt like something was missing now that Lauren wasn't there. He realized that Lauren was becoming someone important to him, and that scared him. There weren't many people that he could say were important to him, other than his family. No girl had ever for this close.
He laid down on his bed, facing the ceiling. He thought about what he had just realized. No other girl had wanted to get as close as Lauren had. She was the first one to become his actual friend. Aside from Bryan, who didn't really count as a friend, Lauren was the only friend he had.
The last time he had said that someone was important to him, when he thought he had made a best friend, that person hurt him. He thought that he would be his best friend forever, but when Landon lost his vision, he ran away. And he didn't want to get hurt again.
'But with Lauren, it's different.' his heart said to him.
Landon ignored the comment, but not completely. It had been right. If Lauren had wanted to leave him, she would have done it already. Lauren was different. She had even stood up for him against her own mom. Nobody had ever done that before and Landon took that as a good sign. Many people had seen them together the day that they went downtown and he was sure many people there knew he was blind. But Lauren never complained or showed any signs of her being embarrassed by the fact that she was seen out with a blind guy. If it had bothered her, Lauren would have left as soon as they were in front of people.
But no. Lauren had stayed and she seemed to enjoy the day. She had said that it was fun. And Landon couldn't help but smile when he remembered how Lauren had fangirled over Robert Downey Jr.
Landon sat up. He let his head rest in his hands. There was something about her. Maybe it was the fact that she was the first person that gave him a chance. The first person to not turn away and run immediately after knowing that he was blind. His mind went back to that first day, when they had met in the park.
He remembered how he had been lying on the grass and how he was crying when he heard a twig break behind him. It had scared him at first, but after he heard no one lunge at him, he relaxed a bit more. He never imagined that the person hiding was a girl. The stress in her voice was evident as she had come out of her hiding place. He felt uncomfortable and guarded when he first talked to her. And after he found out that she was the girl he had collided against the day that he went running, made the uncomfortable feeling go away. What had amazed him was her reaction when Lauren figured out he was blind. Instead of walking away, she stayed.
In reality, Landon guessed that that was the moment she had become special for him. He cared a lot for her and he was worried that the fact would make him more vulnerable. It was probably a silly thought, but he couldn't help it. He had been isolated, and hurt by so many already. Even though Lauren had shown him that she was different, the fear still lingered about him getting hurt. And it would kill him if she hurt him now.
He got up and walked over to the window. He wished he could see. He felt her presence. He felt Lauren standing at the window. He closed his eyed. This is too much Landon, he thought. There's no way that you know she's there. There's no possible way she could be there.
He stood there wondering whether she was there. But he was convinced she wasn't. He opened the window. And he sat for a while on the window sill. There was a small breeze. He looked up wishing he could see the stars in the night sky. When Liam was still alive, often, he would take Landon outside and watch the stars. Landon had always thought the stars were beautiful. He had always wanted to see a shooting star and one time, he did. Liam was with him that time and Liam told him to make a wish. Landon closed his eyes and wished that his dad would always be there with them.
But the wish didn't come true. It was true that he was a child, but his father was supposed to be with him forever, or at least until he was in his forties. Someone took that security away from him. And Landon lost his father, his accomplice, his best friend. It wasn't fair, but he had learn to cope with the whole thing. It didn't get easier though. Everyone said that would time it would get better, but the truth was that it got worse. There was pain and hurt still surrounding his heart. And he was sure that it would never go away.
He went back inside his room and he closed the window. He had to sleep already. If not his mom would know something was up. He went to bed. And he laid down, thinking about everything he had just been thinking about. And after a few minutes, he fell asleep.
A few hours later, he was awakened by a small sound. It sounded like something was hitting the window. Landon thought that he was hallucinating or hearing things, so he tried to ignore it, but the sound kept insisting. He got up and he went to the window and opened it.
"Landon, please let me in. Please!" her voice came in through the window.
"Okay, I'll be down." Landon said.
He opened his bedroom door and he walked down the stairs. He didn't know what time it was, but he knew it was important, He knew it was still dark so it was something important.
When he opened the door, he was met by a crying Lauren. "I'm so sorry, but I had a nightmare . And I didn't want to wake anyone else at my house."
"It's okay." Landon let her in. He sat on the couch and Lauren was still crying. The only thing he could think of doing was wrapping his arms around her. And that's what he did.
"You want to tell me the dream? They say that if you tell someone it won't come true." he said to her.
Lauren looked up at him. "Really?"
Landon nodded, knowing that she could see him.
Lauren became silent and she closed her eyes for a while. Then she began talking about the dream. Landon listened intently. He could feel how scared Lauren was. Even when she knew it had been a dream, the dream had affected her. Landon kept his arms around her as she told the story. And when she had finished, she held on to Landon as if her life depended on it.
Landon didn't mind. He was always going to be here for her.
After a few more minutes of crying, Lauren became silent. "Lauren," he whispered.
There was no reply from her, so he knew she was asleep. He wanted to go get a blanket or something, but he didn't want to move. He didn't want to disturb her, but he also knew that she would be uncomfortable when she woke up, and eventually so would he.
Lauren's arms had loosened their grip around him so it was a lot easier. He got up an was careful not to disturb her. He placed her feet on top of the couch and he rested her head on one of the pillows. He then went to his room to grab a blanket. When he went back downstairs to Lauren, he threw the blanket over her. He checked that her face hadn't been covered by the blanket.
When he was sure she was okay, he kissed her forehead lightly. "Sweet dreams, Lauren."
He went to sleep on a couch next to hers, so she wouldn't freak out when she woke up in a few hours. "Damn," he whispered. "She's here again. Only for a few hours but she's here again."
He knew she was important to him. He knew it now and he was glad that he had met her.